creative grooming

Cat Around Town

CAT Grooming - No dogs allowed

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creative grooming

The Legend of the Pittsburgh Poodle

Many of you may have seen variations of this picture in e-mails, on blogs, and even in magazines...both printed and on-line. You see a picture, but you don't know the whole story. I'd like to share it with you. You see, this is MY dog, and I am the one who groomed him like this. Since 2005 his picture has become somewhat of an internet sensation. It has also caused some heated debate and I want to clear up many of the myths that people believe about creative grooming. Here is the TRUTH.

In 2002 I attended my first Groom Expo, held in Hershey, Pa. I saw the creative grooming competition and was hooked. I knew that I wanted to get a poodle and compete in creative grooming. So the search began.

I wanted an adult poodle, that truly needed a forever home. I located Silas on Petfinder. He was 3 years old, and had already lived in 2 homes since he was born. I saw his picture and fell in love. Knowing that Standard Poodles are an active breed, we had our yard fenced in, just for him. We acquired all the necessary doggy supplies to welcome Silas into our home.

After Silas was in our home for a few months and became comfortable, I began playing with adding bits of color to his coat. When I determined that Silas quite enjoyed this grooming process, I graduated to different types of semi-permanent colors. Keep in mind that Poodles are a HIGH MAINTENANCE breed. Depending on the condition and length of the coat, most poodles are groomed on a monthly basis. It takes approximately anywhere from 2-4 hours to correctly groom a pet quality standard poodle. It can take up to 9 hours to properly prepare a show Poodle. Silas' grooming sessions, even with the application of color, take anywhere from 2 to 3 1/2 hours. No longer than it takes to groom the average pet poodle. I want people to know this, because they ASSUME that the dog has to stand for long periods on the table, which is absolutely untrue.

How did I come up with the idea for the Pittsburgh Poodle? My husband was not into having a "sissy poodle" in the house. Even though I explained to him that Poodles were originally bred to retrieve fowl in water, and they were a very athletic breed. He uttered 5 words that would forever change our lives... "Just make him look manly". I knew my husband loved the steelers and thought that making Silas look like a steeler would turn his favor towards a poodle. In December of 2004, I began the transformation of Silas into Ben Roethlispoodle. Now, truth be told MY favorite player is, and always will be Jerome Bettis, but I knew i couldn't fit the numbers 36 on Silas' back. So he became the Roethlispoodle. His picture was featured in the Post-Gazette and also on KDKA. From that first elementary attempt, I worked out things I liked and didn't like until I competed in Hershey in 2005 with the creation that you see above. Silas and I won 3rd place, AND the coveted "People's Choice" award which allowed us to be featured on the cover of "Groomer to Groomer" magazine.

Does Silas still look like this? The answer is NO. I shaved him down in December of 2005 and he returned to his normal state.

As for those who are concerned about the muzzle on Silas.... It was on for a short period of time. Silas is a 45 lb poodle. That muzzle was for a Great Dane, which was why I had to keep my hand on it. To keep it from falling off. Silas could open his mouth as he pleased, as you can see from the picture.

Silas has been many things since the Steeler Poodle. He has been a cowboy, Gene Simmons, and even a my little Pony. Silas is 8 years old now, and because of his age, he is retired from creative grooming.

Silas is my pet, he is my partner and he is my friend. He does everything a regular dog does. He goes for walks, lays on the couch and rips up stuffed animals, he just does it in color.

In Memory of Silas

Silas passed away on August 27th, 2011. It was with a heavy heart that I had to make the decision to end his pain. In the last few years of his life, Silas developed Addison's Disease, Auto-Immune Mediated Thrombocytopenia, and Pemphigus. He also had arthritis. I found Silas on Petfinder, and although he had papers, I could never get in contact with the breeder for his medical history, or that of the lines he came from. Silas and I had many adventures together, and our years together were the most wonderful years of our lives. Silas will always be remembered. His Steeler groom is one of the most recognized in creative grooming history. In 2010, A photograph of Silas appeared on the UPMC Sports Exhibit Flyer for "Steelers: Whatever It Takes". I have logged onto facebook and seen Steeler fans who use Silas' Picture as their avatar. I don't even know them. And I was just told that a photograph of Silas will be in a new book about the steelers. People may remember Silas for his photograph, but I will always remember him for his wonderful kisses, the way he flied through the air when he ran, and the way he always knew what I was thinking. He will live forever in my heart.

In May of 2009 we welcomed a new Standard Poodle to our home. Franchesca aka Frankie is being groomed for the creative grooming ring.

Here is Franchesca in Chicago at the All American Grooming show in brown and black leopard spots and also at a Parade in my home town in orange spots with butterfly wings that were attached to her harness. In the picture with the wings, she is wearing a "halti" collar, to prevent the overzealous puppy from jumping on the halloween paraders from the elementary school as they pass by.

Frankie just competed in her 2nd competition at Intergroom in New Jersey. She won 2nd place as the "seahorse". She was photographed for the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/19/sports/19grooming.html

Now, I have seen many comments posted about creative grooming on various forums and I would like the chance to counter some of these statements.

"Those Poor dogs" - Do not Pity these dogs. They get to do many things that non-competition dogs do not get to do, such as jumping on hotel beds, going for rides in the car, meeting lots of new people. When my dogs are not competing, which is about 3 times year, they do the same things that regular dogs do. They play ball, romp in the mud, go for walks and sleep on the couch. When they are at the show, everyone wants to see them, pet them, feel them, and take their picture. Many of the dogs also certified therapy dogs who visit children and the elderly.

"They must be humiliated" - Humiliation is a human emotion that dogs do not understand. I don't think that Frankie knows that she looks like a seahorse, or thinks that she looks any other way than she is suppose to. Does a cocker know that it should have the top 3rd of it's ears shaved? Does a Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier know that it is suppose to have a fall instead of separated eyebrows? Does a poodle know that it can only be shown in a puppy clip or continental? No. Last I checked, they didn't read books. And I don't show her a mirror, so she really only sees her front and back legs. And no, the other dogs in the dog park don't treat her any differently. She only gets strange looks from the humans. But she does know that she is special. She gets an extra spring in her step when she gets colored.

"You must have to much time on your hands" - Poodles are a high maintenance breed and applying the color only adds a very small amount of time to her regular grooming schedule. I am a professional groomer and have the correct tools, skills, and equipment, to perform my job quickly and efficiently.

"You should volunteer that time at a shelter" - I know that many creative groomers do! They also rehome dogs who are dropped off at their shops. Because I only groom cats now, I have offered to groom foster cats. Most recently I helped out bathing cats at Animal friends after they received 50 cats from a hoarding home.

"The dogs don't like it" - If the dog was opposed to it, it couldn't be done. A dog who is not cooperative is not a candidate to be a creative dog. Frankie loves to be groomed so much that I have to keep her out of my grooming shop. She gets jealous when I groom my other dog and will jump up onto the table on her own. I think that if she didn't like it, she wouldn't do that. And no, I never trained her to do that.

"those dyes contain harmful chemicals, that's why coloring pets is illegal in some states" -. Coloring animals is illegal in some states, mainly due to the coloring of chicks and bunnies in the 70's. Those chicks and bunnies were then abandoned in masses. Many states made it illegal to color "Rabbit or fowl" and some states included "or any other animal". These dogs are in no danger of being abandoned.

There are some techniques that have been deemed unsafe for use on dogs. I don't use those products.

I am actually an Ambassador and Certifier for the National Association of Professional Creative Groomers. This organization is dedicated to teaching and using only safe products. I work extensively with this group to promote and teach safe products and techniques. In 2010 the NAPCG created the "Silas Award" - Named for my own dog Silas. This award is given to shows who ban the use of hair bleach and oxidizing dyes in their competitions. So far, we have given this award to 1 show..CanadaGrooms. We applaud their accomplishment and hope that many more shows will follow.

"The groomers do it for the attention" - The groomers who do this are not the one's receiving the attention. The dogs are.

I hope that this page has helped you to have a better understanding of creative grooming, and the process and the pets that are involved.